Recommendations

Chapter 1: Australia’s responsibilities under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

Recommendation 1

That the Australian Government respond formally to the Concluding Observations of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child on Australia’s fourth report of progress under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols. The response should indicate how it intends to progress addressing the recommendations, and timelines and benchmarks for their implementation.

Recommendation 2

That the Australian Government accedes to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a Communications Procedure and ratifies the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT).

Recommendation 3

That the Australian Government finalises its review of Australia’s reservations and withdraws its reservation under article 37(c) of the Convention on the Rights of the Child which relates to the obligation to separate children from adults in prison.

Chapter 2: Measures to protect and ensure child rights in Australia Recommendation 4

That the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) extends its current cohort of Australian children in A picture of Australia’s children from 0 to 14 years to 0 to 17 years, consistent with the Convention on the Rights of the Child definition of the child.

Recommendation 5

That the Australian Government establishes relevant data holdings and analytics covering all the key domains of children’s rights outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, including comparable data across jurisdictions, which the National Children’s Commissioner can use to monitor the enjoyment and exercise of human rights by children in Australia.

Recommendation 6

That the Australian Government includes in its regular monitoring and evaluation of national policy reforms and initiatives, a component that reports on how it is giving effect to the articles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Follow up actions by the National Children’s Commissioner

In the next Children’s Rights Report, I will report on the actions taken by the Australian Government in response to the recommendations in my report.

The Australian Government is not due to submit its combined fifth and sixth periodic reports on progress under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols until 15 January 2018. Each year, I will provide an update in the Children’s Rights Report on the Australian Government’s progress in addressing specific recommendations made by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, and on particular thematic issues.

I will also report in the next Children’s Rights Report on gaps and inconsistencies in data collection and monitoring processes, to assist in providing a more comprehensive focus on children’s rights nationally.